Perodua Alza finally launched: a car or an MPV?

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Here it is – the new Perodua Alza! We’ve been following the development of this MPV ever since we first got news of its existence back in early 2008, where it was reported that Toyota and Daihatsu were going to build a new MPV and produce it in Indonesia. When the Daihatsu Luxio MPV came out we all got a shock – that more of a van so we waited patiently until Christmas last year when the Toyota Passo Sette was finally unveiled in Japan. Nearly a year later, the Perodua-badged model with a new front, rear and interior is here. Read the full details after the jump.

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Alot of people that are casually (not urgent) in the market for an MPV will have probably been waiting for the D46T project to be launched for a long time now. After all, the majority of the country can only afford either a Proton or a Perodua, and you really have to wonder why it took them so long to serve this market niche when all of its competitors have been priced out of affordability.

The national MPVs should have come sooner so that consumers who have big families would not have needed to stuff their 5-seaters to the brim whenever they needed to balik kampung.

I have to say that with the Myvi, the Japanese Passo looked better, but with the Alza I feel our own Malaysian design team has trumped the Japanese guys. The Passo Sette had this slightly bulgy-eyed look while the Alza looks far more sleeker. I don’t see any reason why anyone would want to ‘convert’ their Alza back to a Passo Sette but then again design is a subjective personal thing.

As for the name Alza, it actually means ‘to rise’ in Spanish. Probably symbolises Perodua rising up the product segments once again – its cars are getting bigger and bigger.

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The Perodua Alza’s headlamps also come with projector lenses for the main beam across the entire line-up. I’m not saying you should be doing this but for those that want to retrofit HID bulbs to the Alza, the projector lenses will result in a relatively cleaner and nicer looking light beam.

On the rear you get LED tail lamps and for the Premium version you also get a spoiler. There is a bee sting antenna located towards the rear of the roof but towards the left rear instead of being positioned smack in the middle. Perodua says this is so that the owner will be able to flip the antenna down when required easily as compared to if it was in the middle. There are a few colours to choose from but personally I’m digging the Classy Purple, which is a new colour.

How much is the new Perodua Alza?

So anyway, here we are finally, the Perodua Alza. The smaller MPV also comes with a smaller price tag, though Proton has worked to introduce the Exora Basic as well. Perodua says the Alza project first started off as the D46T about 3 years ago. The Japanese version was unveiled on Christmas day last year.

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It’s cheaper than the Exora though technically it isn’t the cheapest in the market. Changan-Berjaya sells their Chana Era CM8 “van” at prices starting from under RM40k.
Perodua Alza 1.5L Standard M/T
Solid – RM55,490
Metallic – RM55,990
S. Metallic – RM56,190 Perodua Alza 1.5L Standard A/T
Solid – RM58,490
Metallic – RM58,990
S. Metallic – RM59,190
Perodua Alza 1.5L Premium M/T
Solid – RM60,490
Metallic – RM60,990
S. Metallic – RM61,190 Perodua Alza 1.5L Premium A/T
Solid – RM63,490
Metallic – RM63,990
S. Metallic – RM64,190

*S. Metallic – Pearl White

Datuk Syed Hafiz revealed that a sportier version with a bodykit, GPS navigation and a reverse camera will be introduced in March 2010, though I think showrooms are already taking bookings for this version now. This model will be premium and auto-only, and will go for RM69,990 which is RM6k on top of the Metallic Premium automatic.

How big is the Perodua Alza?
Alza Exora Livina 1.6 Avanza 1.5 Rondo Innova
Kerb Weight 1,150kg 1,422kg 1,245kg 1,120kg 1,563kg 1,575kg
Length 4,205 4,592 4,420 4,150 4,545 4,580
Width 1,695 1,809 1,690 1,630 1,800 1,770
Height 1,620 1,691 1,590 1,695 1,650 1,755
Wheelbase 2,750 2,730 2,600 2,655 2,700 2,750
Track (F) 1,475 1,542 1,470 1,415 1,573 1,510
Track (R) 1,465 1,530 1,475 1,425 1,569 1,510
Fuel Tank 42L 55L 52L 45L 55L 55L
Power (hp) 104hp 125hp 104hp 108hp 142hp 134hp
Torque (Nm) 136Nm 150Nm 150Nm 141Nm 189Nm 182Nm
kg/Nm 8.45 9.48 8.3 7.94 8.27 8.65

Above you will find a comparison of various MPVs available in the Malaysian market. The Alza’s power output and weight is actually quite similiar to the Avanza’s, which means performance should be comparable. The Alza and Avanza actually use the same 3SZ-VE engine though the Alza’s is transverse and the Avanza’s is longitudinal for rear wheel drive installation. There is a discrepancy with the power figures quoted above for the Alza and Avanza engine, but I think it’s because Perodua gave DIN numbers while the Toyota numbers are a different kind of measurement.